The 2012 Apple Desktops (Part 3 of 3)-The Mac Pro

Apple is expected to release their new desktops in the coming months. They are expected to release the computers with goodies. Let’s discuss the last computer of the three to be covered, what I believe to be one of their most needed updates ever. I have covered the 2012/2013 Mac mini here and the 2012/2013 iMac here.

The Mac Pro

With the last REAL update being 2 years ago, it is time for Apple to update the Mac Pro. Designed with professionals in mind, the Mac Pro, even being 2 years old, delivers supreme power that most computer companies have failed to surpass. While the Mac Pro is not the industry standard right now, it will be when new Mac Pros come out.

2012 update

There has already been an update this year for the Mac Pro. What you’re probably thinking right now is “there was?”. Yes. There was an update to the Mac Pro. So if there was an update THIS YEAR to the Mac Pro then why do we need another this year or early next year. Well, because we need one. The update I’m referring to was an update that should never have existed and even Apple regrets. The update was minuscule. The next update is big. Considering it hasn’t been upgraded in two years, that’s not a surprise. Let’s explore those big features.

Processor?

The Xeon 5 processors are expected to be used in the new Mac Pros since they are not energy hogs like the Ivy Bridge processors. They can be handled on the laptops because of the low cost consumption that the laptops have anyway, but the Pro desktops take up a lot of power. Now that is not to say that they wouldn’t use the Ivy Bridge but if they do, it would make the Mac Pro one power hungry machine. Some specs are saying up to a 3.6 GHz quad core processor as opposed to the 2.8 GHz quad core processor, 2.6 GHz 8-core dual processors vs. the 2.93 6 core dual processors, these updates are incredible and would turn an already fast machine into a power horse capable of anything (not that it is now, but this spec bump is very significant).

I/O

ThunderBolt is something many people have been wanting on the Mac Pro and I am happy to say that he ThunderBolt technology is all but confirmed for the next Mac Pros. The five USB ports on the computer and two on the included keyboard will be upgraded from 2.0 to 3.0. This will definitely increase read and write speeds significantly. I believe that FireWire may be dropped, however I do not believe that it will happen this time around. I would expect that two FireWire ports are dropped in favor of two Thunderbolt ones. The Bluetooth 2.1 will be replaced with Bluetooth 4.0.

RAM

I believe that the RAM on the computers will stay the same, but may upgrade their speeds a bit. The RAM is a HUGE amount of RAM and needs NO change.

Storage

I believe that the storage on the Mac Pro will no longer be hard drives. I believe that they will have SDDs as standard. 512 GB standard with an option for 1 TB of SSD. The reason that Apple will make this change is because they are switching out of the HDDs and their Mac Pros are not an exception to that rule, they are making the switch just like all the rest of them. SDDs are faster and more reliable and provide fast boot up times. HDDs tend to break and not to mention they are a decades old technology. SDDs are the future of Apple computer storage.

SuperDrive

A question has come up in the past year or so, with digital media the way it’s taking off and how little, if at all, we use our DVD drives in our computers, do we really need them in our computers? Just as Apple did first with the floppy disk, they shall do with the DVD drive or SuperDrive. They will get rid of it really before anyone else does. This is a good thing and it also brings me to my next point.

Case

Because of the elimination of the space-consuming DVD drive and the fact that the case of the Mac Pro hasn’t changed in years, I believe that the case will change. To what? I don’t know. However, I can tell you that I believe that it will go on a diet, it will not be as big as it is now, not as thick as it is now. It will be smaller, not close to Mac mini but smaller. How the case will change is a bit unclear but it is almost given that the case will change.

Release Date?

It is believed by the general consensus that the new Mac Pros will not be released this year, they will be released next year and that is not surprising since Apple CEO Tim Cook said in an email to a customer that it will be available “next year”. What time next year remains completely unclear, however since Apple has been pressured for a while now to release it, they will release it as early as they can while still providing a superior product that Apple has been known to provide for years.

The Mac Pro has been a great computer for many professionals everywhere. The new Mac Pro will provide a better computing experience then ever before. It will be a huge update. If there are other features you would like to see in the new Mac Pros, let us know in the comments!